The Secrets of The Alpha

chapter four: Frozen in the Dead of Winter

As Sheldon and Dexter are driving, they can't see anything from the snowstorm, and on unfamiliar grounds, they have no idea what they are doing. Suddenly, they heard a faint scream from the distance. They decided to pull over and look for whoever was screaming. "Dude, what was that? It sounds almost human." Dexter asked nervously. He looked at Sheldon, who was at the wheel. Sheldon shrugged and turned the car off. "I don't know, man. Let's go check it out." They got out of the car and started walking in the direction of the scream. The storm was getting worse by the second, making it hard to see anything. They trudged through the snow, their steps slow and labored. "There's no way we can do this, man. We should just go back to the car and call for help." Dexter shouted, his voice strained from the cold. But Sheldon wouldn't listen. He had a feeling that something was wrong, and he couldn't just leave whoever was out here to die. "We can't leave the person out here to freeze!" Sheldon shouted over the wind. They continued on, their bodies growing numb from the cold. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they stumbled upon a figure lying in the snow. It was a young man, barely conscious. They kneeled beside him, and they saw the wounds on him; he strangely smelt like smoke.

"Why does he smell like smoke?" Sheldon asked Dexter curiously. He pointed out the burnt-up trees, and they were still smoking. It was assumed that someone had tried to set the forest on fire. Sheldon and Dexter carefully picked up the unconscious man and carried him to their car. They wrapped him in blankets and started the engine to heat up the car. After a few minutes, the man began to stir. He opened his eyes and looked around in confusion. "Where... where am I?" he managed to croak. "You're with us, man. We found you in the woods. You've been hurt pretty badly. We're taking you to our cabin, which we rented out months ago." The man seemed to nod off again, but after a few more minutes, he slowly sat up, wincing in pain. "Th-thank you... I... I don't know where I am. My name is Cedar. I think I was trying to get to Hogsmeade. There was a fire... I was with my brother, and we buried my mom." Tears welled up in Cedar's eyes as he spoke. Sheldon glanced at Dexter, who was looking at Cedar with an understanding expression. "Well, Cedar, we're not from around here either. Our names are Sheldon and Dexter. We were just passing through when we found you. We can take you to a hospital if you'd like."

Cedar shook his head weakly. "No, I don't even know what's a hospital."I just want to go to Hogsmeade. My brother is out there searching for me, and we just started to bond." Cedar has tears in his eyes as he says, "I don't want to lose him too." Sheldon and Dexter exchange glances; they know what it's like to lose someone you care about. They decide to help Cedar as much as they can.

"Do you know what happened or remember anything at all? You hit your head pretty hard." Sheldon asked Cedar gently, concerned about his well-being. Cedar took a deep breath and tried to focus. "I remember... my brother and I were talking about how he killed my mother during a blackout. We searched for her and buried her body, but our father Solar found out. He chased us down and set the forest on fire to lure us out." Sheldon and Dexter exchanged worried glances. They didn't know what to make of this story. But they knew they couldn't leave Cedar alone to face whatever demons he was dealing with. They decided to take him to the nearest town, where they could call for help and get him to safety. As they drove through the storm, Cedar drifted in and out of consciousness, his ravaged body shivering uncontrollably.

"He doesn't look too good; he needs help fast. We need to get out of here before anyone he knows finds us." Sheldon spoke to Dexter, worried about Cedar's well-being. Dexter nodded in agreement, and he drove faster through the storm. They finally arrived at a small town; they needed to find their cabin to ride out the snowstorm that was raging outside. They found their cabin; it was cozy and warm, perfect for hiding from the storm. They laid Cedar down on the couch and wrapped him in blankets, trying to make him as comfortable as possible. Sheldon made some soup for them to eat, hoping it would help warm up Cedar when he woke up.